Tennis teaching device and method

ABSTRACT

A device for teaching correct tennis stroke while swinging a tennis racket to hit a tennis ball. The device is comprised of a frame having a pair of spaced apart, triangular shaped side members. An elongated shaft is extended between the side members and has each end attached to a respective side member. A wheel is rotatably mounted on the shaft between the side members and above a ground support surface. Each side member has a configuration to allow the frame to be suspended on a support and above the ground support surface whereby the wheel will be freely rotatable on the shaft when struck by a tennis racket. The wheel is then struck with a glancing blow of a tennis racket during followthrough of the swinging motion of a trainee.

This application is a divisional application of application Ser. No.588,211, filed Jul. 26, 1990, (U.S. Pat. No. 5,056,785).

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to method and devices for teaching the hitting oftennis balls, and in particular the striking of the tennis ball toimpart desired spins and slices thereto.

2. Related Art

U.S. Pat. No. 3,866,912 discloses a target structure mounted on anupright support shaft and a tennis ball simulating structure centrallymounted on the elongated target structure with deflector structureslocated at each end of the target structure on each opposite side of thetennis ball structure.

The tennis service instructional device of U.S. Pat. No. 3,940,132reveals a tennis ball releasably held by suction at the mouth of asuspended supple hose at the proper height to be stroked by a tennisracquet such that the tennis ball is released from the restraining forceof the suction upon impact by the tennis racquet.

The tennis stroke practice device of U.S. Pat. No. 3,948,517 uses aracquet target and a rotating ball mounted for rotation in a verticalplane upon being struck. A path defining means arrests the rotation ofthe ball except when it has been hit correctly.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,999,753 discloses a tennis ball dispensing device forpracticing tennis strokes that includes an inclined tubular chute forretaining and delivering balls to a flexible sock having an openingtherein permitting release of the tennis ball, the sock being suspendedfrom a pivotal ring located at the lower end of the chute.

The tennis stroke practice device comprises a base plate with anupstanding tubular member positioned thereon to receive a z-shaped tubeadjustably positioned therein and being comprised of telescoping membersfor adjusting the length thereof. One of the telescoping portionsincludes a ball positioned thereon such that the user can place astringless tennis racquet thereover and practice his stroke by swingingthe racquet throughout the length of the z-shaped tube.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,752,070 discloses a racket sport teaching aid devicewith a frame having a pointing member with a weight attached to thelower end of the frame. The weighted frame physically maintains the faceof the racquet perpendicular to the plane of the ground at both the backswing and the ball impact point. The pointing member serves as a visualguide which points to the intended target point at completion of thestroke.

Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 4,519,608 reveals a tennis training devicecomprising a telescopic and orientable rod attachable to a wide belt inthe dorsal region of the tennis player and bearing at its end anobstacle, the position of which is adjusted to define the place wherethe player's racquet is required to come to rest in the correctexecution of a stroke of a definite type.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The teaching method and device of the present invention provides bothpositive and negative feedback when stroking the various spin shots intennis, such as topspin, slice and spin serves.

The teaching device and method of the present invention enables thebeginning and intermediate player to understand more accurately theconcept behind imparting spin to a tennis ball.

The present invention allows a player of any skill level to practice andgroove his tennis strokes.

The spinning device of the present invention can be used alone or with apartner.

The spinning device can be hand held, used on a platform or attached toa support such as a fence.

Because the beginning tennis player cannot stroke most tennis shotsproficiently enough to impart the desired spin, hop or slice to theball, there is great difficulty recognizing whether the ball has beenstroked correctly or not. The teaching device and method of the presentinvention provides the tennis player with the necessary feedback todevelop tennis shots, and particularly topspin, slice and spin shots,faster than would otherwise be the case.

Specifically the following tennis shots can be taught or practiced withthe device and method of the present invention: topspin ground strokes,slice ground strokes, side spin ground stroke, drop shot, slice serve,twist serve and topspin lob. With respect to the teaching of the twistserve, the method and device of the present invention vividly show howto vary the angle and speed thereof.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, the tennisteaching device comprises a circular wheel made of a soft, pliablematerial, such as polyurethane, mounted on a shaft rotatably attached toan intermediate shaft, which in turn is attached to a grip, such as thatfound on tennis racquets. The tennis teaching device is gripped by thetennis player and held in an appropriate position to practice serves orground strokes by hitting the surface of the wheel with the strings of atennis racquet, thereby causing the wheel to rotate in one direction oranother in accordance with the location on the wheel that is struck bythe tennis racquet, and, of course, the direction of motion of thetennis racquet relative to the wheel. By varying the direction of motionof the racquet relative to the wheel the tennis player can impartdifferent spins or twists to the wheel causing it to rotate in onedirection or the other. The rotation of the wheel provides a vividdemonstration of the different spin effects imparted to the wheel bystriking it at different angles with the strings of a tennis racquet,which effects are similar to that imparted to a tennis ball when struckin the same manner as the wheel. Alternatively, the tennis device may beheld by one tennis player or coach while being struck by another tennisplayer.

Alternatively, the wheel may be rotatably mounted in a frame which canbe attached to a post, the fence surrounding a tennis court, orsupported on the surface of the court by the frame itself.

The intermediate shaft is bent to facilitate holding of the teachingdevice by the tennis player in a position that is convenient to enablethe wheel to be struck by a tennis racquet held in the other hand of thetennis player.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above objects, features and advantages of the invention are readilyapparent from the following description of the best mode of carrying outthe invention when taken in conjunction with the following drawings,wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the tennis teaching device of thepresent invention showing the basic components thereof;

FIG. 2 is a side view partially in section showing the relationshipbetween the fixed, shaft, rotatable shaft and rotating wheel of thetennis device of FIG. 1:

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a modified embodiment of the teachingdevice of the invention;

FIG. 3A is a detailed view of a modified grip of the teaching device inaccordance with the invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates use of the tennis teaching device being held by atennis player in a position to practice ground strokes;

FIG. 5 shows use of the tennis teaching device by a tennis player in aposition for practicing serves;

FIG. 6 is a side view of the tennis teaching device of the inventionmounting on a post, thereby freeing both hands of the tennis player forpracticing ground strokes;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the tennis teaching device of FIG. 6 ofthe invention; and

FIG. 8 is a modified embodiment of a frame for supporting the tennisteaching device of the invention on the ground or the surface of thetennis court.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As shown in the perspective view of an embodiment of the tennis teachingdevice of the invention, in which wheel 10 is attached to shaft 12 whichin turn is rotatable on fixed intermediate shaft 14 and fixed bearing 16such that the aforementioned assembly of elements can be hand-held by atennis player (not shown) by means of hand grip 18 as will be more fullyexplained hereinafter with respect to FIGS. 4 and 5. Shaft 14 is bent atportions 20 and 22 to enable the tennis teaching device to beconveniently held by a tennis player with one hand while striking wheel10 with a tennis racquet in the other hand, thereby enabling both groundstokes and serves to be practiced. The angles of bending in intermediateshaft 14 are more fully described with respect to FIG. 3, infra.

Wheel 10 is preferably made of a soft, pliable but resilient substancesuch as polyurethane to resemble the surface of a tennis ball and toprovide the necessary resilience to withstand constant and repetitiousstriking by the stings of a tennis racquet. Such a suitable substancewould be, for example, a flexible foam type polyurethane compound. Othermaterials may be used, the criteria being that they have thecharacteristics set forth above.

In the embodiment of FIG. 1 the corners 24, 26 of wheel 10 areillustrated as being sharp; however, corners 24, 26 may also be rounded,thereby presenting a surface more akin to that of a tennis ball asillustrated in FIG. 2 by rounded corners 24', 26'.

As shown in FIG. 2, bearings 16, 16' are rotatably mounted tointermediate shaft 14 and fixed to shaft 12 in spaced relation, and theassembly of wheel 10, shaft 12 and bearings 16, 16' is retained onintermediate shaft 14 by removable cotter pins 28, 28'. Wheel 10 ispreferably force fit over shaft 12, thereby enabling its replacement inthe event of normal wear or damage. Intermediate shaft 14 may be made ofa lightweight material such as aluminum. In a prototype of the inventionmade by the inventor, shafts 12 and 14, bearings 16 and grip 18comprised a paint roller assembly, and wheel 10 was cut from a pillowcushion. This proved to be an adequate teaching device which lasted formany months of tennis instruction and experimentation. It is thereforeevident that the teaching device of the invention may be constructed ofa wide range of materials, i.e., from the very crude to thesophisticated.

The side view of a modified tennis device of the invention as shown inFIG. 3 is the same as that shown in FIG. 1 with the exception that wheel10 is shaped to include a conical-shaped end portion 30, 30' on eachrespective side of wheel 10, thereby affording a more dynamically stableconfiguration with high speed rotation imparted to wheel 10 by beingstruck by the strings of a tennis racquet. In a preferred embodiment ofthe invention, portion 14a of intermediate shaft 14 is formed at anangle of approximately 150 degrees with the longitudinal axis of grip18; portions 14b and 14c of intermediate shaft 14 are formed at an angleof 150 degrees with respect to one another; and portion 14c ofintermediate shaft 14 is formed at an angle of 150 degrees with thelongitudinal axis of shaft 12. These angles are not critical and mayvary by five to ten degrees. The important criteria is that theresultant angle of the longitudinal axis of grip 18 with thelongitudinal axis of shaft 12 be such that the teaching device can beheld in one hand by a tennis player such that the wheel 10 may beconveniently struck by a tennis racquet held in the hand of the tennisplayer and enable both ground strokes and serves to be practiced asshown in FIGS. 4 and 5.

FIG. 3A is a detailed view of a modified grip or handle of the tennisteaching device showing a curved grip 18' which may be preferred to thestraight grip 18 shown in both FIGS. 2 and 3 to more readily enable thetennis device to held in a more comfortable and accessible position inthe hand of the tennis player to be used as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5.

FIG. 4 illustrates the use of the tennis teaching device of theinvention for practicing ground strokes wherein a tennis player 32 isholding the tennis teaching device in the left hand and striking wheel10 with the strings 34 of tennis racquet 36 to impart a rotation ofwheel 10 in one direction or the other depending upon whether top spinor back spin is imparted to wheel 10. For example by striking wheel 10with an upwardly directed stroke as is commonly employed when hitting atennis ball to impart topspin thereto, wheel 10 will rotate CW as shownin FIG. 4. The application of back spin to a tennis ball is learned bythe tennis play by hitting wheel 10 with a generally downwardly directedstoke thereby causing wheel 10 to rotate in a CCW direction as shown inFIG. 4. It is apparent that a tennis player can practice theaforementioned strokes at all different angles and heights by raising orlowering the tennis device and by moving it from side-to-side inrelation to the body of the tennis player. Moreover, by turning thetennis device so that wheel 10 rotates substantially parallel to theground, the tennis player 32 may practice side spin ground strokes.

Furthermore, top spin lobs may be practiced by holding the tennis deviceas shown and hitting wheel 10 with a more upwardly motion than thatnecessary to produce a top spin shot. Also, a drop shot may be practicedby undercutting wheel 10 with the strings 34 of tennis racquet 36 tocause a CCW rotation of wheel 10.

In FIG. 5 a tennis player 32 is shown practicing serves by holding thetennis device substantially as shown and striking wheel 10 with thestrings 34 of tennis racquet 36. A top spin serve is practiced bystriking wheel 10 to impart a CW rotation thereof. A twist serve ispracticed by tilting wheel 10 at substantially a 45 degree angle andthen striking it with the strings 34 of tennis racquet 36 in a mannersimilar to that of the top spin serve just described.

FIGS. 6 and 7 illustrate wheel 10 and shafts 12 and 14 of a modifiedtennis device suspended by frame 38 mounted to post 40 thereby relievinga tennis player from having to hold the tennis teaching device. Frame 38merely consists of frame members 42, 44 and 46 formed in triangularshape as shown in FIG. 6 with frame member 46 including a hooked endportion 48 for engaging projection 50 of post 40. Projection 52 of thepost engages the lower portion of frame member 46 to retain frame 38 inthe position shown in FIG. 6. It is readily apparent that post 40 may bemade adjustable in height such that the height of wheel 10 may beadjusted as desired by a tennis player. Alternatively, frame 38 may besuspended from the fence of a tennis court by hooked end portions 48,48' at any height desired by the tennis player.

FIG. 10 shows a modified form of a frame 38' for supporting wheel 10 andshafts 12, 14 and bearing 16 on any desired portion of the ground orsurface of, for example, a tennis court. Frame 38' is squarely orrectangularly-shaped and formed of frame members 52, 54, 56, 58, 60, 62,64, 66 and 70 with wheel 10, shafts 12, 14 and bearings 16 of the tennisteaching device mounted between upright frame members 54, 56. It isevident that the height of frame members 54, 56 may be made adjustablethereby enabling the height of wheel 10 to be adjusted as desired by atennis player.

Tennis players, and especially players just taking up or learning thegame, have difficulty in learning the proper manner or technique ofstroking the ball as such players tend to hit the ball "flat", whereasit is desired to put some spin on the ball. From the foregoingdescription of preferred embodiments of the invention it is evident thatthe tennis device enables a tennis player, and especially a beginningtennis player, to more readily learn the techniques involved inimparting various types of spin to a tennis ball. The rotation of thewheel as it is struck by the strings of a tennis racquet affords a vividillustration of the proper manner to address a tennis ball to achievesimilar spin thereof.

While various modifications and alterations can be made to the tennisteaching device described herein, the scope of the claims appendedhereto is not intended to be limited by the explicit embodimentsdescribed herein, but such scope is intended to be determined by theequivalents to which the appended claims are entitled.

What is claimed is:
 1. A device for teaching tennis strokes,comprising:a frame; a shaft adapted to be mounted within said frame; awheel rotatably mounted on said shaft about a spin axis; a tennisracquet held by a hand of the user for stroking said wheel, said wheelthereby being induced to spin about said spin axis to simulate theeffect of inducing spin on a tennis ball; and said frame is formed by apair of triangularly-shaped members and said shaft extending betweencorresponding apices of said pair of triangularly-shaped members, and acorresponding leg of each triangularly-shaped member including means forsuspending the frame from a support member, whereby said wheel issuspended from the ground at a height convenient for being struck bysaid tennis racquet.
 2. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein saidwheel is made of flexible foam polyurethane.
 3. A device as claimed inclaim 1, wherein said wheel includes raised portions on each sidethereof to stabilize the spinning of the wheel.
 4. A device according toclaim 1, wherein said wheel is removably mounted to said shaft.
 5. Adevice according to claim 1, wherein said triangularly-shaped memberseach form identical right triangles and said apices are located at anintersection of the hypotenuse and another leg forming the right angle.6. A device according to claim 1, wherein said support member is a pairof posts.
 7. A device according to claim 1, wherein said support memberis a fence.
 8. A device according to claim 1, wherein said frame isdefined as a three-dimensional rectangularly-shaped support member withupper and lower parallely-spaced support members, the latter supportmembers being in contact with the ground and said shaft mounted betweenthe respective end portions of said upper parallely-spaced supportmembers so that said wheel is accessible for contact with said tennisracquet.